Senior Program Support Officer-PoN

Job Description

INTERNAL/EXTERNAL VACANCY

ANNOUNCEMENT

For

Senior Program Support Officer-PoN

Country Office: Ethiopia

Work Base: Action Against Hunger USA, Addis Ababa

Availability: As Soon As Possible

Insurance - (Life, Group Personal Accident and Medical Insurances are covered upon the organization policies).

Seniority Allowance – paid depending up the years of service.

 Female candidates are highly encouraged to apply for this position.

About Action Against Hunger

Action Against Hunger-USA is a global humanitarian organization that takes decisive action against the causes and effects of hunger. We save the lives of malnourished children and we enable entire communities to be free from hunger. With more than 8,000 staff in over 50 countries, our programs reached 17+ million people yearly.

 About the Country Program in Ethiopia

Action Against Hunger has been operational in Ethiopia since 1984 responding to both chronic and acute needs through a multi-sectoral strategy where nutrition, Food Security and Livelihoods, WASH, and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support activities are integrated to have a meaningful impact on people’s resilience. Action Against Hunger currently operates in 5 different regions (Oromia, Somali, Amhara, Benishangul Gumuz, and Gambella) with a portfolio of 20m USD/year of emergency, resilience building, research, and innovation programs. We have a country team of around 600 staff in 17 regional and satellite offices. Our main donors in Ethiopia in 2020/2021 are BHA, ECHO, Europaid, UNHCR, UNICEF, GFFO, BPRM, SIDA, EHF, WFP, CIAA, The Netherlands (Dutch) Government and others. 

I. Position Summary

Action Against Hunger has received a five-year contract from the Power of Nutrition (PON) to conduct operational research in Ethiopia on select innovations in the community-based management of acute malnutrition (CMAM) that aim to improve the coverage and cost-effectiveness of treatment. The operational research component is led by Action Against Hunger USA alongside partners including UNICEF and the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, among others.

The operational research study, or “Modified Dosage for Acute Malnutrition” (MODAM) Trial, aims to address critical gaps in linking knowledge to effective action on acute malnutrition treatment, including how to scale proven innovative approaches to treatment and their implications for the broader policy-level environment. This randomized controlled trial will test a modified dosage of the therapeutic foods used to treat acute malnutrition at health posts (HPs) across each target woreda. As current and projected resources are insufficient to meet the total burden of wasting in Ethiopia, there is need to explore ways to increase the cost-effectiveness of treatment. The use of a modified dosage protocol may contribute to achieving such advances by reducing the cost of product per child treated and cured while maintaining comparable treatment outcomes. This project will also assess post-discharge relapse to acute malnutrition and test the effectiveness of training caregivers on the Family MUAC approach after a child has been discharged as recovered from OTP and TSFP on early identification and referral.

In collaboration with core project staff, the Senior Program Support Officer (SPSO) will provide a high level financial, logistics, supply management and reporting support to the operational research project. S/he will support critical operational and administrative aspects of the PON grant as well as other co-funding sources, including donor reporting, budget management and monitoring, sub-award management, supply procurement and tracking. S/he is expected to support and leverage existing internal and external relationships towards realizing effective and efficient project operation at capital and base/field levels.

The PON Senior Program Support Officer’s purpose, engagement and expected delivery are:

Purpose:

As a key member of the research team, the PON Senior Program Support Officer (SPSO) will be responsible for supporting operational and administrative aspects of the PON grant as well as other co-funding sources, including donor reporting, budget management and monitoring, sub-award management, supply procurement and tracking, and project-specific HR and new recruitment tasks.

Engagement:

S/he will engage closely with the PON/MODAM Research Team as well as the Grants Management Team, Finance Team, Logistics Team and Health and nutrition team at both base and capital levels. 

Delivery:

The PON Senior Program Support Officer will be responsible to deliver high quality and timely financial reports

 II. Essential Job Duties

 1.  Grants management and reporting (21%)

• Develop and oversee system to track all donor and government reporting  requirements and deadlines alongside Roving Research Program Manager, Government liaising and reporting  and Grants team
• Support the grants management team and Capital and Base research teams to prepare, update, and share regular narrative and financial reports according to donor compliance requirements, ensure timely report submission, and address donor feedback
• Coordinate with research team and grants management team to prepare for and engage with the monthly grants and budget review (BFU) meeting
• Manage and review sub-award engagement, including monitoring sub-award partner financial and technical reports.

2.  Budget development and monitoring (53%)

• Responsible for the regular control of project budget management, guidance, support, including addressing budget revision requirements and monitoring of cash in-flow from various donors and partners; keep the research project coordinator/s and team fully informed with respect to project budget status to allow for effective planning and implementation of project inputs.
• Alongside Finance department and Roving Research Program Manager, develop and implement system to monitor overall project expenditures, including inputs from all funding sources
• Collaborate with Finance team to develop BFUs for all newly identified co-funding sources and integrate into overall expenditure monitoring system
• Enhance the capacity of field based research managers and supervisors on BFU. In addition, support field and capital team to compile base-level Budget Follow up Unit (BFU) inputs.
• Coordinate with Field Research Coordinator and Roving Research Program Manager to produce capital-level budget forecasts, ensuring alignment with donor flexibility rules and government 80/20 requirement.
• Support in the preparation of budgets for co-funding applications, using donor templates and adhering to donor requirements
• Ensure availability of budget for all procurement requests and timely validate the purchase through link.
• At the end of the month, the SPSO is responsible for ensuring the base and capital program/support staff personnel allocation (time allocation) is accurate and fair.
• Perform grants receivable/payables reconciliations and tracking in collaboration with the finance team and have an up-to-date balance of the project at each time.
• Prepare government financial reports for the project and submit it to the relevant department for filing

3.      Supply procurement and tracking (21%)

•  Support Roving Research Program Manager to develop project procurement plans (PPPs) and supply plans (SPs) for new project co-funding sources according to identified needs
• Raise and follow-up on national-level procurement requests for project supplies; follow-up on base-level procurement requests to ensure timely delivery
• Validate RUTF/RUSF stock usage reports, support, and facilitate forecasting as well as acquisition of nutrition supplies at base, regional, and national level.
• Engage with base-level research staff, UNICEF, and WFP to ensure consistent and timely delivery of nutrition commodities and supply chain coordination.

4.  Human resource (5%)

• Collaborate with the research team and HR to support project-specific HR-related tasks, such as support in any process for recruiting and onboarding new hires, tracking and managing leave for project staff, and other HR-related tasks for the PON award.
• Perform other duties as assigned by his/her line manager.

III. Supervisory Responsibilities

• No supervisory responsibilities.

IV. Fiscal Responsibility

•  No fiscal responsibilities.

V. Physical Demands

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to sit for long periods and to concentrate on work, including typing, and turn out heavy volumes of work accurately, within short time frames under stressful situations in the context of a moderately noisy office with interruptions.
• To travel to the field, the employee must attest to a level of physical fitness capable of enduring physically difficult, highly stressful situations which may include the necessity to walk long distances, to eat a limited diet and/or to reside in potentially uncomfortable housing or tents.
• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

VI. Working Conditions, Travel and Environment

•  The duties of the job require regular job attendance at least five days per week. Must be available to work outside normal office hours or on the weekends as required by contact with the missions, mission security, or other obligations.
• Must be able to travel as required for standard domestic and international business travel as well as to the sub-offices if appropriate. While visiting sub-offices, the employee may be exposed to precarious settings under high security risks and/or very basic living conditions and outside weather conditions, as well as to infectious diseases.

VII.   Gender Equality Commitments & Zero Tolerance to Abuse

• Foster an environment that reinforces values of people of all genders equal access to information
• Provide a work environment where people of all genders must be evaluated and promoted based on their skills and performance
• Promote a safe, secure, and respectful environment for all stakeholders, particularly for children, beneficiaries, and members of staff
• Help to prevent any type of abuse including workplace harassment and sexual abuse and exploitation.
• Respect beneficiaries’ women, men, children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sex orientation, disability, religion, race, color, ancestry, national origin, age, or marital status
• Value and respect all cultures

Job Requirement

VIII. Required Qualifications and Professional Experience

• Required degree in accounting, project management, business administration, logistics and supply management or related field
• Minimum 3-5 years’ experience in finance, grants management, or project management
• Strong track record of budget development and monitoring for a range of donors
• Practical experience of working in INGOs is preferable
• Familiarity with nutrition and research related works will have a plus

IX. Required Skills

•  Fluency in both English and Amharic; professional proficiency in Somali or Afan Oromo preferred.
• Excellent computer skills, including good command of Microsoft Office and accounting software
• Knowledge of donor reporting guidelines (e.g., PoN, ECF,UNICEF, ECHO, SIDA, GFFO) preferred
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong organizational skills and meticulous attention to detail
• Ability to take initiative and prioritize multiple tasks with minimum supervision
• Good judgement and problem-solving skills, strong communication skills and documentation habits
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work both independently and as a member of a team
• Genuine interest in and commitment to the mission and principles of Action Against Hunger